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“It’s happened?” I asked.

“’Fraid so. Papers got signed during the game.”

We arrived at an office, probably one they got permission to use to deliver the news. Coach closed the door behind us and pulled his phone from his pocket. He tapped the screen and faced it toward him.

“I’ve got Kyle here.”

“Thanks.” I recognized the GM’s voice. Coach handed the phone over with the boss’s face filling the screen, and I held it in front of me. “Hello, Kyle. Great game tonight. It was fun watching you and Howell snipe at each other.”

“Thank you, sir.” I couldn’t suppress a grin, knowing we’d entertained at least one person besides ourselves.

“I imagine you know why we’re talking.”

I nodded.

“You, along with Helson and Feldman, are going to Phoenix where you’ll play tomorrow night. Billington will be on our lineup for our next game as well.”

Lucky him. He’d get an extra day to travel, unlike the three of us.

I nodded, managing to keep my sigh inside.

“I know this wasn’t what you wanted. Phoenix, however, really wanted you, and we couldn’t shake them off that. I imagine you know the impact Billington can have here.”

“Yes, sir. I do.”

“Your agent and the league will be in touch on all the logistics. The stuff in your locker here is getting packed up, and it’ll meet you in Phoenix. There’s a charter waiting for you at the airport, and someone from the team will meet you when you land. I’ll be honest, I hope we get you home someday, even more so because we all know Detroit is where you want to be. If there’s anything we can do during the transition, please let us know.”

“I’ll do that. Thank you.”

“I know you’ve got an interview waiting, so I’ll let you get to that. Thank you again, Kyle. It’s been a pleasure having you on the Arsenal.”

I nodded and handed the phone back to Coach. “I’ll get Helson and be back in a moment.” He tapped the screen and pocketed it. “It’s been great working with you all these years.”

“You too. I learned a lot.” We did a bro hug and a handshake before going back into the hall.

David hovered just outside the door, and we headed back to the ice.

I joined G, standing just on the edge of the ice. Burlington’s Coach was doing his postgame interview, and we waited to go next.

“You okay? I heard.” G wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

I sighed. “Eh. I suppose I’m glad the hammer’s finally dropped. I wish my last game was in Detroit. At least I got to play my last Arsenal game against you, so there’s something.”

“When do you go?”

I gave him all the details, and his expression clouded. I knew why. He expected me to freak all the more because I didn’t get to go home first. I wanted to have a tantrum but I couldn’t. I had to be an adult, a professional. The eight-year-old inside could do his thing later.

“I know Matty Berkshire pretty well. He used to play here. I’ll give him a call. He’s a good guy and grinds away on D. He’s been there three years now.”

“Thanks, man.”

A woman did a walking slide across the ice to us from where the camera crew was. G greeted the reporter warmly. Not surprising they knew each other.

“They’ve just gone to commercial, and you guys are next. Let’s get you over there.” We followed. “The segment’ll be two to three minutes. We’re going to focus mostly on the fun you two had tonight, but we’re gonna ask about the trade that just went down if that’s okay, Kyle.”

“Sure.”

“There’s always some friendly trash talk when we play against each other.” G started us off after the intro. “Something about tonight… I don’t know.”